Scorching temperatures do not rain on Puerto Rican People's Parade

The 40th Puerto Rican People’s Parade drew people from as close as the parade’s backyard to as far as Minnesota for the alcapurrias, music and community.

The parade kicked off shortly after 2 p.m. on the corner of Division Street and Western Avenue, with Mayor Rahm Emanuel and community members leading the procession of red, white and blue — the colors of the Puerto Rican flag.

Advertisement

While parade attendees fanned themselves and spritzed water, the high temperatures — which are expected to climb Sunday and could set a record — didn’t deter them from having a good time. Rafael Suarez, a resident of Logan Square, said it made him “only more excited.”

“It's sunny. I mean who cares if it's in the 80s, the 90s or 104? You got to be ready,” Suarez said. “What culture would be more ready than one that bakes on an island?”

Music blasted from float to float, as people wearing clothing with the flag’s insignia watched the parade make its way to Sacramento Avenue near Humboldt Park, where the 36th Annual Puerto Rican Festival is taking place through Sunday.

Felicia Garcia-Alvarez trekked to Chicago from St. Cloud, Minn., with her two kids and sister Brenda Thole. It was their first summer festival in Chicago, and Garcia-Alvarez said she felt it was important to show her kids what their culture is about since St. Cloud lacks a large Puerto Rican community.

“You don't see a lot of Puerto Ricans even,” Thole said. “So for us to do something like this, we're even excited to be able to be here for the first time in our lives.”

The parade, featuring more than 75 floats, paid homage to its founders and the nonprofit Puerto Rican Agenda’s work to rebuild the island following the devastation Hurricane Maria wrecked in September.

A Harvard study released in May found that at least 4,645 people died because of the storm, a number that greatly exceeded the official government death toll of 64.

Teresita Bernal, a Humboldt Park resident, said she had been on vacation in Puerto Rico a month before the hurricane hit. When she heard the news, she felt devastated.

“The hair on my back stood and the first thing I did was donate,” Bernal, 56, said.

Bernal said she plans to return to Puerto Rico this year to help her family and friends who lost their homes on the island. On Saturday, she stood with her family in front of her daughter’s newly opened restaurant, Antojos & Shakes, and showed her pride on her shirt that read, “Not only am I perfect, I’m Puerto Rican too.”

“Just like we are supporting everybody outside our country, let's support the ones who are here,” Bernal said. “Let's help them and let's lift them up.”

Born in Chicago and half-Puerto Rican, Suarez said his parents have photos of when he first attended the parade, cheesing from his stroller when he was less than a year old.

With a Puerto Rican flag draped across his back like a cape, Saurez danced to the music as floats passed by. To him, the parade is where he feels the strongest ties to his community.

“It's just an amazing way to celebrate the culture and diversity of the Puerto Rican diaspora,” said Suarez, 29. “Also, to remember and reflect on a culture that has suffered so much loss and so much hardship for so long, to be able to be free and to just have a lot of fun with it even though we're in the country that has taken us over.”

Advertisement

Mercedes Rivera, an Albany Park resident, said she’s been coming to the parade since it began decades ago.

“The carts used to have real flowers on them, and they were very beautiful and colorful,” said Rivera, 67. “And there was a lot of famous people — singers and people important to our community.”

And there is more heat in store for area residents. Highs are expected to reach 97 degrees Sunday, with limited relief in the evenings with lows in the 80s, said Charles Mott, a meteorologist for the National Weather Service. An excessive heat warning has been issued through Monday evening.

People are advised to drink plenty of water and avoid strenuous activities in the “oppressive warmth,” according to the National Weather Service. Chicago residents can call 311 to request well-being checks on family and to locate the nearest cooling center.

Sunday is expected to be the warmest day of the weekend and may come close to breaking a record, Mott said.

The hottest June 16 on record was in 1913, when temperatures reached 98 degrees. The record for June 17 is 96 degrees in 1957, Mott said.